Larry Murphy (ice hockey)

Larry Murphy
Hockey Hall of Fame, 2004
Murphy (left) with Paul Coffey at a pregame ceremony in Pittsburgh, April 2010
Born	March 8, 1961 Scarborough, ON, CAN
Height	6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
Weight	210 lb (95 kg; 15 st 0 lb)
Position	Defense
Shot	Right
Played for	Los Angeles Kings Washington Capitals Minnesota North Stars Pittsburgh Penguins Toronto Maple Leafs Detroit Red Wings
National team	Canada
NHL Draft	4th overall, 1980 Los Angeles Kings
Playing career	1980–2001

Lawrence Thomas Murphy (born March 8, 1961) is a former Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman. He currently serves as a studio analyst on NHL Network.

Playing career

After a stellar junior career with the Peterborough Petes and representing Canada at the 1980 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships, Murphy was drafted 4th overall in the 1980 NHL Entry Draft by the Los Angeles Kings. In the 1980–81 NHL season, he set National Hockey League records for most assists and points by a rookie defenceman, with 60 and 76 respectively. He was eventually traded to the Washington Capitals for defencemen Brian Engblom and Ken Houston early in the 1983-84 season, which did not work out in the Kings favor long-term because of Murphy's prolonged success in the league.

In his 21-season career (1980–2001), Murphy would eventually play for six different NHL teams. In addition to the Kings and Capitals, he also suited up for the Minnesota North Stars, Pittsburgh Penguins, Toronto Maple Leafs, and Detroit Red Wings.

In 1995, after being named to the second-team All-Stars Murphy was traded to his hometown Leafs from the Penguins for Dmitri Mironov and a second round pick. Leafs fans booed Murphy, the highest paid player on the Leafs, mercilessly as a scapegoat for the lack of success the team was having. He was traded to Detroit for future considerations, and was an integral part of their two consecutive Stanley Cups in 1997 and 1998. In the 1997–98 NHL Playoffs, he tied Paul Coffey's record for most shorthanded goals scored by a defenceman in the playoffs with 2.

When Murphy retired after the 2000–01 NHL season, his 1615 regular season games played stood as a record for the most career games by a defenceman; a mark previously held by Tim Horton. In 2003–04, Scott Stevens of the New Jersey Devils surpassed this mark, finishing the season with 1635 games played.

He was on four Stanley Cup winning teams during the decade of the 1990s, the only NHL player to accomplish this feat. He was a part of the only 2 NHL teams to win back-to-back titles during the decade, the Penguins in 1991 and 1992 and the Red Wings in 1997 and 1998.

In addition to his NHL championships, Murphy also won a Memorial Cup with the Peterborough Petes in 1979. The Petes also reached the championship game the following year, but lost in overtime.

In 1987, Murphy was a key member of Canada's championship team in the Canada Cup. His six assists tied teammate Ray Bourque for tops in the tournament among defencemen, which included Mario Lemieux's overtime goal in game 2 of the Final against the Soviet Union. He then scored a goal and two assists in the decisive third game, and was also used as a decoy by Wayne Gretzky on Lemieux's tournament winner.

He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2004. Finishing his career with 1216 points, Murphy is currently the fifth highest scoring defenceman in NHL history, behind Ray Bourque, Paul Coffey, Al MacInnis and Phil Housley.^[1]

One of Murphy's most notable successes was the "Murphy Dump". During his stint with the Pittsburgh Penguins, Murphy would often dump the puck down the ice by lifting it high over the opposing team so that it eventually stops before the opposing goal line. This would not only clear the zone safely, but would not result in an icing call. The "Murphy Dump" was officially coined by Penguins broadcaster Mike Lange.

Broadcasting

Murphy was an alternate color analyst for the Detroit Red Wings on Fox Sports Detroit. He only did color commentator duties for Red Wings west coast road trips in place of Mickey Redmond, from 2003-2006 Murphy shared this duty with former teammate Pat Verbeek where they would alternate road trips. However following the 2005–06 NHL season, Verbeek left the job as broadcaster to become a scout for the Red Wings and Murphy took over full-time on west coast road trips. In addition in 2006, Murphy started contributing as a studio analyst on pregames, post games and intermissions in which he does not broadcast. In the 2007-08 season, Murphy began serving as a "Between the Benches" reporter for Fox Sports Detroit when Mickey Redmond was broadcasting, and subbed for Redmond when he had surgery to remove a tumor on his lung. He also made occasional appearances on the NHL Network's nightly hockey highlight show, NHL on the Fly. In March, 2013, it was announced by Fox Sports Detroit that he had been fired, after being told they weren't satisfied with ratings.^[2]

Awards and achievements

• Member of four Stanley Cup winning teams: 1991 and 1992 with the Pittsburgh Penguins, and 1997 and 1998 with the Detroit Red Wings
• Selected to three NHL All-Star Games: 1994, 1996 and 1999
• Selected to three NHL Second All-Star Teams: 1987, 1993 and 1995
• Inducted to the Hockey Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility (2004)

Career statistics

				Regular Season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1978–79	Peterborough Petes	OHA		66	6	21	27	82		—	—	—	—	—
1979–80	Peterborough Petes	OHA		68	21	68	89	88		—	—	—	—	—
1980–81	Los Angeles Kings	NHL		80	16	60	76	79		4	3	0	3	2
1981–82	Los Angeles Kings	NHL		79	22	44	66	95		10	2	8	10	12
1982–83	Los Angeles Kings	NHL		77	14	48	62	81		—	—	—	—	—
1983–84	Los Angeles Kings	NHL		6	0	3	3	0		—	—	—	—	—
1983–84	Washington Capitals	NHL		72	13	33	46	50		8	0	3	3	6
1984–85	Washington Capitals	NHL		79	13	42	55	51		5	2	3	5	0
1985–86	Washington Capitals	NHL		78	21	44	65	50		9	1	5	6	6
1986–87	Washington Capitals	NHL		80	23	58	81	39		7	2	2	4	6
1987–88	Washington Capitals	NHL		79	8	53	61	72		13	4	4	8	33
1988–89	Washington Capitals	NHL		65	7	29	36	70		—	—	—	—	—
1988–89	Minnesota North Stars	NHL		13	4	6	10	12		5	0	2	2	8
1989–90	Minnesota North Stars	NHL		77	10	58	68	44		7	1	2	3	31
1990–91	Minnesota North Stars	NHL		31	4	11	15	38		—	—	—	—	—
1990–91	Pittsburgh Penguins	NHL		44	5	23	28	30		23	5	18	23	44
1991–92	Pittsburgh Penguins	NHL		77	21	56	77	48		21	6	10	16	19
1992–93	Pittsburgh Penguins	NHL		83	22	63	85	73		12	2	11	13	10
1993–94	Pittsburgh Penguins	NHL		84	17	56	73	44		6	0	5	5	0
1994–95	Pittsburgh Penguins	NHL		48	13	25	38	18		12	2	13	15	0
1995–96	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL		82	12	49	61	34		6	0	2	2	4
1996–97	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL		69	7	32	39	20		—	—	—	—	—
1996–97	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		12	2	4	6	0		20	2	9	11	8
1997–98	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		82	11	41	52	37		22	3	12	15	2
1998–99	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		80	10	42	52	42		10	0	2	2	8
1999–00	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		81	10	30	40	45		9	2	3	5	2
2000–01	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		57	2	19	21	12		6	0	1	1	0
NHL Totals				1615	287	929	1216	1084		215	37	115	152	201

See also

• List of NHL statistical leaders
• List of NHL players with 1000 points
• List of NHL players with 1000 games played

References

1. Murphy at Legends of Hockey/HHOF.
2. http://www.sbnation.com/2013/3/23/4138658/larry-murphy-fired-fs-detroit-red-wings

External links

• Larry Murphy's biography at Legends of Hockey
• Larry Murphy's career statistics at The Internet Hockey Database